Retro Television Review: St. Elsewhere 4.7 “Close Encounters”

Posted on August 21, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Fridays, I will be reviewing St. Elsewhere, a medical show which ran on NBC from 1982 to 1988. The show can be found on Daily Motion.

This week, John Doe No. 6 returns.

Episode 4.7 “Close Encounters”

(Dir by Eric Laneuville, originally aired on November 20th, 1985)

This episode begins with a jolt. Dr. Victor Ehrlich is actually choosing to be ethical as opposed to just kissing up. Ehrlich is currently doing a rotation in plastic surgery, where he’s working with Bobby Caldwell. Caldwell already disliked Ehrlich before Ehrlich even joined the department. Caldwell’s opinion is not improved when he discovers that Ehrlich has talked a patient out of getting an eye tuck that Caldwell recommended. When Caldwell confronts him, Ehrlich argues that the surgery wasn’t necessary and that Caldwell manipulated the man into agreeing because Caldwell’s department is currently on the chopping block. When Ehrlich threatens to go to Dr. Craig, Caldwell sneers. Dr. Craig is the one who personally recruited Caldwell to come to St. Eligius. Ehrlich, on the other hand, is just “the hospital clown.”

Yikes. When Bobby Caldwell was introduced two seasons ago, he was mild-mannered and likable and clearly on the show because Mark Harmon looked good without a shirt on. This season, Caldwell has been arrogant and self-destructive. The fresh scar on his face has become a symbol for the scar on his soul. Personally, I think Bobby is a much more interesting character now. Every soap opera needs a villain and, by the time the fourth season started, St. Elsewhere had definitely become a soap opera.

As for Dr. Craig, he’s not there to talk to Ehrlich because he’s accompanied his daughter-in-law to her hometown in Clinton, New York. Yvonne (Suzanne Lederer) has been in a coma ever since Stephen Craig flipped their car. In this episode, she finally opens her eyes but she still isn’t speaking or mobile. Along with helping to transfer Yvonne to a new hospital, Craig has another reason for going to New York. He’s promised Ellen that he will return with their granddaughter, Barbara. However, when Dr. Craig spends the night there, he discovers that Yvonne’s parents aren’t the backward monsters that he assumed they were. He sees that they love Barbara and that they are taking care of her. Though he doesn’t say it, one gets the feeling that Dr. Craig realizes that Ellen mostly just wants custody of Barbara so she can have a part of Stephen. In New York, Dr. Craig finally starts to understand why Stephen and Yvonne designated Yvonne’s parents as Barbara’s legal guardians. Dr. Craig returns to Boston without Barbara. “I hate you for this, Mark,” Ellen says.

Meanwhile, astronaut Col. Chuck Cochrane (David Ackroyd) has decided that his seizure and subsequent dream were all signs from God telling him not to return to space. NASA, concerned that Cochrane is going to give the program a bad name, sends Captain Gloria Neal (Betty White) to the hospital. (Gloria mentions that she was sent by Major Healey, which is undoubtedly a reference to Roger Healey from I Dream of Jeannie.) Because Gloria went to medical school with Dr. Westphall, NASA thinks that she’ll be able to influence him to discharge Cochrane from the hospital so that he can be taken back to Walter Reed and forced to rejoin the space program. Westphall, however, decides to support Dr. Morrison’s decision not to discharge Cochrane. Westphall goes on to tell Gloria that she’s not much of a doctor anymore. She’s just a PR agent for the government. “So, I guess we won’t be sleeping together,” Gloria replies.

Ugh, Westphall. I know that I spent a lot of time complaining about Dr. Westphall, but this episode really epitomized everything that I dislike about the character. When he’s not depressed, he’s self-righteous. Whenever anyone disagrees with him, he starts talking about his experiences volunteering at a clinic in Ethiopia, as if that experience automatically makes his opinion superior to anyone else’s. In this episode, he decides that it’s his place to judge Gloria’s life decisions. Seriously, Westphall is the worst!

Finally, John Doe No. 6 (Oliver Clark) is back. He’s recovered from the surgery that initially left him comatose. He can speak and move again but he still has amnesia. He’s back in the psych ward. While watching television, he suddenly realizes who he is. He’s Mary Richards from The Mary Tyler Moore Show! He decides that a fellow patient, Mr. Carlin (Jack Riley), is Mary’s friend Rhoda. Dr. Auschlander is Mary’s co-worker, Murray. He tries to throw a party in the psych ward and it’s awful because Mary’s parties are always awful! When he sees Gloria Neal walking down the hospital hallway, he thinks that she’s Sue Ann Nivens, the happy homemaker! “Excuse me?” Gloria asks, confused.

Of course, Betty White did play Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. (St. Elsewhere itself was produced by Mary Tyler Moore’s production company.) Even more interesting, however, is that Jack Riley previously played Mr. Carlin on The Bob Newhart Show. Oliver Clark also appeared on The Bob Newhart Show, playing Mr. Herd, who was a member of the same therapy group as Mr. Carlin. As such, viewers who had previously seen The Bob Newhart Show (whether during its original run or, if you’re like me, via reruns) would have known that John Doe No. 6 was actually Mr. Herd. The episode’s biggest mystery is easily solved by those with a knowledge of television history. At the same time, it’s also interesting to note that Mr. Carlin presumably recognizes John Doe No. 6 but has yet to let anyone know.

It makes for a bizarre but enjoyable episode. Bobby is turning into a monster. The Craigs are headed for divorce. Dr. Westphall just insulted Betty White. But even with all that, it’s hard not to get caught up in John Doe No. 6’s joy. He’s going to make it after all!

Retro Television Review: St. Elsewhere 4.4 “The Naked and the Dead”

Posted on July 31, 2026 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Life is getting dark in Boston!

Episode 4.4 “The Naked and the Dead”

(Dir by Leo Penn, originally aired on October 30th, 1985)

This episode opens with Dr. Craig in an even worse mood than usual. There’s two newspapers in Boston and they each have a totally different weather forecast. One says that the day is going to be warm and sunny. The other says to expect rain. How is Dr. Craig supposed to know whether or not take an umbrella to the hospital!? Ellen, meanwhile, is preparing for Stephen’s funeral, which is going to be held later in the day.

Yes, Dr. Craig does go to the hospital on the day of his son’s funeral. He says that he has no choice because his patients need him but it’s obvious that the hospital is his way of avoiding the grief and guilt that he feels over the death of his son. Ellen worries about whether or not Stephen will be buried in a comfortable suit. Dr. Craig yells at a post-op patient for smoking and eating too much. They’re both dealing with their sadness.

Dr. Westphall, meanwhile, deals with his nonstop depression by coming up with new (and impractical) community projects for the hospital. In this episode, he leaves Tommy with a babysitter so that he can try to persuade the Board of Directors to fund his latest project, a clinic devoted to battling malnutrition. The Board turns him down. Westphall returns home a depressed. That’s nothing new. Westphall is always depressed. That said, this was the first episode in which I really felt as if I understood Westphall’s depression. Westphall feels guilty because, for all of his medical training, he still doesn’t understand his son’s autism. So, instead of dealing with Tommy, Westphall throws himself into the hospital. He’s really not that much different from Dr. Craig.

While that’s going on, Bobby hooks up with a physical therapist at the hospital. Nurse Lucy (Jennifer Savidge) steals his scrubs and we get the sight of a half-naked Mark Harmon running through the hospital. Meanwhile, an aspiring teenage photographer (Robert Romanus — DAMONE FROM FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH!) is beaten up when he sells some bad drugs to the other inhabitants of the group home where he lives. The photographer is dead by the end of the episode. It’s just that type of day.

This episode ends with Dr. Craig and his wife going to the funeral. It’s raining, of course.

Wow, what a depressing episode! Fortunately, the strong ensemble cast kept things bearable, even though there wasn’t much happiness to be found over the course of the hour. Still, I worry about Dr. Craig. He really does seem like he’s just a few days away from snapping. Hopefully, he’ll express his grief at some point. It’s not good to hold all that in. We know there’s a bar near the hospital and Dr. Craig seems like he’s on the verge of becoming a regular.

Are things going to continue to get dark or is Boston going to see happier day? We’ll find out next week!

MAN WITH A CAMERA (TV Series) – starring Charles Bronson – S1, E6: Double Negative

Posted on September 11, 2025 by Bradley Crain

In this episode, freelance photographer Mike Kovac (Charles Bronson) receives a tip from reporter Mike Costigan (Frank Faylen) about a mysterious woman. Acting on the lead, Mike snaps a photograph of the woman, only to discover that she bears a striking resemblance to Helen Sprague (Tracey Roberts), a lady who was reportedly murdered by night club owner Howard Dorn (Don Durant). When she shows back up alive, the D.A. will have to drop the charges on Dorn, right? Well it’s not that easy as a punch-drunk ex-fighter Pete Montee (Karl Lukas) shows up at Mike’s house and insists that the woman in the photo is his girlfriend Connie Sawyer. It turns out that Costigan and Dorn are trying to cash in on Kovac’s honest reputation to get away with murder. When Mike gets wise to their plan, he becomes their next target for death!!

This episode of MAN WITH A CAMERA was directed by Gerald Mayer, who would direct 11 episodes of the series. It’s a solid “film noir” episode, with Bronson’s Mike Kovac getting caught up in a murder plot involving double-crossing bad guys, a duplicitous dame, and a dumb lug, where he’ll be lucky if he comes out alive. Of course, a young Bronson is the biggest draw in every episode of MAN WITH A CAMERA. Along with his magnetic screen presence, Bronson always knew how to throw a punch and he gets to engage in a couple of nice fisticuff sequences in “Double Negative.” It makes for good balance as his camera gets him into hot water at the beginning and his fists get him out of hot water at the end. I also want to throw some love Karl Lukas’ way as the ex-fighter, Pete Mantee. He’s clearly not the sharpest tool in the toolshed, but his performance is the most enjoyable of the series, outside of Bronson, up to this point. His combination of innocent, dumb, and unbelievably strong is a lot of fun.

Overall, “Double Negative” is one of the best episodes of MAN WITH A CAMERA so far. Bronson is at his best and I really like the film-noir feel. If you haven’t watched on episode on Amazon Prime yet, this would not be a bad place to start!

SHANE (The TV Series) – Episode 1: The Distant Bell (aired September 10th, 1966)

Posted on January 1, 2025 by Bradley Crain

I’ve been called “Charles Bronson’s biggest fan” on multiple occasions and by people I greatly respect. It’s possible that’s close to being true, but I chose to buy the entire TV series of SHANE on DVD because I wanted to watch Bronson’s wife, Jill Ireland, in a role that doesn’t include her more famous husband. I also wanted to see a young David Carradine as Shane. It doesn’t hurt that the 1953 film starring Alan Ladd is one of my absolute favorite movies.

The very first episode of SHANE starts off with Mr. Starett (Tom Tully) and the new schoolmarm (Diane Ladd) riding into town. They immediately run into Mr. Ryker (Bert Freed) and his henchman Harve (Lawrence Mann), who tells them in no uncertain terms that there will never be a school in this town. Enter Shane (David Carradine), who works for Mr. Starett. He tells Harve to get out of the way, and Mr. Starett, the school teacher and Shane head out to their ranch.

The new school is going to be in Ed Howell’s (Karl Lukas) barn. Mr. Howell is concerned about the school and his own personal safety since he’s heard of Ryker’s threats. Mr. Starett reassures him that everything will be okay so they head to Grafton’s general store to purchase supplies. Mr. Ryker shows up there and tries some more intimidation. When they leave the store, they notice a fire off in the distance. It’s Ed Howell’s barn. Appalled by all of this violence, the schoolteacher catches the next stage out of town.

Marian Starett (Jill Ireland), old man Starett’s daughter, decides she will teach the school. She knows her son Joey (Christopher Shea) needs to be educated along with the other children in the area. Since the barn was burned down, Marian asks Mr. Grafton if they can use the saloon to hold their classes since men don’t come to drink until 4:00 or later. Of course, now Mr. Ryker decides to come early and start drinking. They break bottles and glasses on the floor while the kids try to do their multiplication tables. Scared for the children, Marian takes the kids out and the future of the school appears to be in doubt again.

Shane decides he’s had enough of this crap. He begins building a school out in the country and tells Marian that school will start there tomorrow. He’s prepared to defend the school against Ryker, Harve and anyone else who gets in the way. The next morning, Shane tells Marian & Mr. Starett to listen for the school bell. If they hear it, come on. If they don’t, there will be no school. Harve confronts Shane at the new school building. If Shane is defeated, the idea for the school and the education of the kids in the valley will be dead with him…

I enjoyed this first episode. The main cast does a fine job. David Carradine is a solid Shane. He has the confidence of a man who knows his true value is his ability with a gun. He doesn’t lead with the gun, but he’ll go there when it’s required. Jill Ireland is also good as Marian Starett. There’s a nice bit of sexual tension between her and Shane, and she’s also good as the doting mother to Joey. It is nice to see her in a role that doesn’t involve Charles Bronson, and she’s good in this first episode. Tom Tully is good as old man Starett, Marian’s father-in-law. His character is necessary as a guy who provides some needed relief between Shane and Marian. Finally, Joey is played by Christopher Shea. I’ll have to see how he grows on me as the series progresses. He’s fine in the first episode. Interestingly, he voiced Linus in the classics, “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” so I’m willing to give him some space to grow!

I’m looking forward to seeing where the series goes. It’s a total of 17 episodes so it won’t take too long to get there!

A Movie A Day #185: Emperor of the North Pole (1973, directed by Robert Aldrich)

Posted on July 12, 2017 by Jedadiah Leland

Emperor of the North Pole is the story of depression-era hobos and one man who is determined to kill them.

The year is 1933 and Shack (Ernest Borgnine) is one of the toughest conductors around. At a time when destitute and desperate men are riding the rails in search of work and food, Shack has declared that no one will ride his train for free. When Shack is first introduced, the sadistic conductor is seen shoving a hobo off of his train and onto the tracks. Shack smiles with satisfaction when the man is chopped in half under the train’s wheels.

A-No.1 (Lee Marvin) is a legend, the unofficial king of the hobos. A grizzled veteran, A-No. 1 has been riding the rails for most of his life. (The title comes from the hobo saying that great hobos, like A-No. 1, are like the Emperor of the North Pole, the ruler of a vast wasteland). A-No. 1 is determined to do what no hobo has ever done, successfully hitch a ride on Shack’s train. He even tags a water tower, announcing to everyone that he intends to take Shack’s train all the way to Portland.

If A-No. 1 did not have enough to worry about with Shack determined to get him, he is also being tailed by Cigaret (Keith Carradine), a young and cocky hobo who is determined to become as big a legend as A-No. 1. Cigaret and A. No. 1 may work together but they never trust each other.

Like many of Robert Aldrich’s later films, Emperor of the North Pole is too long and the rambling narrative often promises more than it can deliver. Like almost all movies that were released at the time, Emperor of North Pole attempts to turn its story into a contemporary allegory, with Shack standing in for the establishment, A-No. 1 representing the liberal anti-establishment, and, most problematically, Cigaret serving as a symbol for the callow counter culture, eager to take credit for A-No. 1’s accomplishments but not willing to put in any hard work himself.

As an allegory, Emperor of the North Pole is too heavy-handed but, as a gritty adventure film, it works wonderfully. Lee Marvin is perfectly cast as the wise, no-nonsense A-No. 1. This was the sixth film in which Marvin and Borgnine co-starred and the two old pros both go at each other with gusto. Carradine does the best he can with an underwritten part but this is Borgnine and Marvin’s film all the way. Marvin’s trademark underacting meshes perfectly with Borgnine’s trademark overacting, with the movie making perfect use of both men’s distinctive screen personas. As staged by Aldrich, the final fight between Shack and A-No. 1 is a classic.

Even at a time when almost every anti-establishment film of the early 70s is being rediscovered, Emperor of the North Pole remains unjustly obscure. When it was first released, it struggled at the box office. Unsure of how to sell a movie about hobos and worrying that audiences were staying away because they thought it might be a Christmas film, 20th Century Fox pulled the movie from circulation and then rereleased it under a slightly altered name: Emperor of the North. As far as titles go, Emperor of the North makes even less sense than Emperor of the North Pole. Even with the title change, Emperor of the North Pole flopped at the box office but, fortunately for him, Aldrich was already working on what would become his biggest hit: The Longest Yard.

Keep an eye out for Lance Henriksen, in one of his earliest roles. Supposedly, he plays a railroad worker. If you spot him, let me know because I have watched Emperor of the North Pole three times and I still can’t find him.